Tensions between the opposition and M7's government came humiliatingly to a head once again this past week with the preventive detention & house arrest of FDC leader Dr. Basigye.
Wikipedia defines preventive detention as an imprisonment imposed not as a punishment for a crime, but in order to prevent a person from commiting a crime, if that person is deemed likely to commit a crime.
After the opposition defied the governments order not to demonstrate during the week when students where sitting for their national Olevel exams, the government basically threw the book at the opposition leader. Knowing the number of tools and leverage available to the governmet under such circumstances, you begin to wonder why the opposition did not see this coming!
Since the oppositions lopsided lose to M7 in the last presidential election, this is just another episode in a string of setbacks the opposition has suffered with more sobering dimensions. Its had to see how the opposition can overcome this current setback without some sole searching for real concessions to at least some of the governments demands.
There is a great deal wrong with M7's government and his overetended stay in power, but comparisons to Gadhafi are a bit exaggerated.
Unlike Gadhafi's Libya, Uganda retains democratic trapings with periodic presidential elections albeit all won by M7 on a less-than level playing field. Uganda also has an elected parliament, with opposition members and a functioning judiciary that has just indicted a former vice president and several current cabinet ministers on corruption charges.
If the opposition has genuine grevicences, why cant it use the judicial process?
Sunday, October 23, 2011
A candid look at Uganda's opposition!
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